I had a great time this past weekend at the Los Angeles Religious Education Congress, hanging out at the Commonweal booth and talking to both loyal present subscribers and potentially new subscribers.  People came by to talk about all sorts of things but two of our more enthusiastic visitors were telling me about two very interesting DVDs.

Claudia Larson is the writer, producer and director of a recent documentary about Dorothy Day titled Dorothy Day: Don’t Call Me A Saint. Claudia told us about the making of this film and how she became obsessed with the idea of trying to let Dorothy tell her own story through interviews with friends, family and colleagues.  Before starting this grand undertaking, Claudia had no prior experience with film making but really felt driven to complete the project when she learned more and more about Dorothy Day’s history.  The movie was completed in her own home and now there are pictures and articles about Dorothy Day covering her walls.  Those who knew Dorothy have said that this film, much more than others, helps to capture her true spirit.  If you watch it, be sure to keep an eye out for Commonweal‘s managing editor Pat Jordan. 

 The other film I heard about is called American Idealist: The Story of Sargent Shriver.  John McGreevy put up a post about this film back in November and it debuted on PBS in January.  The gentleman at the L.A. Congress who talked to me about it said he was very excited about the mention of Commonweal in the beginning of the film.  He was also very impressed by the fact that this DVD only costs $2.25 to order online (plus $5.20 S&H).

Any other good, independent DVDs to look for?